Chapter 9: Safety of navigation (Part IA)

Chadux̂ is a non-profit organization governed by industry representatives and funded by participating vessel owner/operators that provides vessels operating in Western Alaska and the U.S. Arctic with best management practices and response capabilities. The Network has over 500 vessel companies from around the world representing over 4,500 vessels enrolled in its programs.

Chadux̂ has adopted routing measures for cargo, passenger vessels and yachts as well as for fishing, towing and supply vessels. Routing measures for tank vessels have also been adopted and implemented. Conformance with these routing measures results in vessels operating further off shore and away from environmentally sensitive areas. In addition, participating vessels are monitored 24/7 while in the U.S. Arctic. This monitoring allows for prompt notification of propulsion or navigation issues that require prompt attention to reduce the likelihood of a grounding and pollution event. For information on enrolling in the Chadux̂ and to learn more about risk reducing routing measures in the U.S. Arctic click here.

Hyperlink: Eagle.org

ABS is a leading international classification organization devoted to promoting the security of life and property and preserving the natural environment through the development and verification of standards for the design, construction and operational maintenance of marine and offshore assets.

The ABS IMO Polar Code Advisory has several sections that offer guidance to the marine industry on navigation in Polar Waters.

Hyperlink: https://iho.int/uploads/user/Inter-Regional%20Coordination/RHC/ARHC/MISC/Notice%20on%20caution%20required%20when%20using%20nautical%20charts%20in%20Arctic%20waters3.pdf

Caution required when using nautical charts of Arctic waters. "As members or associate members of the Arctic Regional Hydrographic Commission (ARHC) and as Member States of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), the government Hydrographic Offices of Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America wish to highlight the significant limitations and risks associated with marine navigation in the Arctic."

Hyperlink: https://www.ccamlr.org/en/data/online-gis
The site provides broad scale information on the whole Antarctic Area including daily sea ice concentrations, polar front positions, and a range of management area information from fishing management units to marine protected areas and vulnerable marine ecosystems. Data can be layered onto an Antarctic wide map or viewed layer by layer. As well as the latest extent of sea-ice, it is possible to search for place names and zoom to specific areas.

CCAMLR website

The IHO, as an Observer organization at the IMO and its chief advisor on nautical charting issues, has contributed to the safety considerations of the Polar Code, related specifically to the generally unsatisfactory state of the underlying hydrographic surveys from which existing nautical charts in the polar regions are derived.

The IHO input has been based on the work of the two hydrographic Commissions that cover the polar regions - the Arctic Regional Hydrographic Commission (ARHC) and the IHO Hydrographic Commission on Antarctica (HCA). Each Commission provides a framework for cooperation and coordination between the various countries that produce nautical charts of polar waters.

1) IHO Hydrographic Dictionary (IHO Publication S-32)

2) Status of Hydrographic Surveying and Charting Worldwide (IHO Publication C-55) (5 November 2020) (provides base data for governments and supporting international organizations as they consider the best means by which to implement responsibilities set out in Chapter V, Regulation 9, of the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention)

3) Joint IHO/IMO/WMO Manual on Maritime Safety Information (MSI) (IHO Publication No. 53) (January 2016)

4) Facts About Electronic Charts and Carriage Requirements (IHO Publication S-66) (January 2018)

5) The Need for National Hydrographic Services (IHO Publication M-2) (June 2018)

6) Caution Required When Using Nautical Charts of Arctic Waters (ARHC Notice) (28 June 2017)

7) International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO) (Version 4.0, July 2020) (The goal of the IBCAO initiative is to develop a digital database that contains all available bathymetric data north of 64° North, for use by mapmakers, researchers, institutions, and others whose work requires a detailed and accurate knowledge of the depth and the shape of the Arctic seabed.)

8) Mariners' Guide to Accuracy of Depth Information in Electronic Navigational Charts (ENC) (IHO S-67) (October 2020)

Hyperlink: IMO Polar Code
Follow this link for DNV GL’s guide to the Polar Code Document ‘Maritime Polar Code: Understand the Code’s requirements to take the right steps for smooth compliance’. For Chapter 9, see page 24.

See also:

• IMO Polar Code on the DNV GL website
• Arctic shipping risk assessment and winterisation

Hyperlink 1: http://www.bsis-ice.de/IcePortal/
The Ice Logistics Portal (http://www.bsis-ice.de/IcePortal/) is operated by the German Hydrographic Service. This site provides convenient access to current ice charts produced by all of the national ice services in PDF and GIF formats as well as S-411 code for import to Electronic Navigation Chart System. Additionally, the site provides links to background ice information and coding standards. The ice information available on the Ice Logistics Portal is critical for voyage planning and navigation in Polar Regions. The information on the portal is not new but duplicates current ice chart data available on national ice service websites. It alleviates the need for mariners to be familiar with all of those sites and is more appropriate for the ASBPIF than an extensive listing of individual ice service websites.

Hyperlink 2: http://nsidc.org/noaa/iicwg/
For Arctic shipping, the website of the International Ice Charting Working Group (IICWG) most importantly provides contact information for all of the national ice services in the world, including 24/7 emergency access to ice information. Additionally, the site provides information about IICWG activities, summaries and presentations from annual IICWG meetings, documents on standards, and links to other ice information sites.

IICWG website

Hyperlink: https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=IIPHome
The website of the International Ice Patrol (IIP) is hosted by the United States Coast Guard Navigation Center. The site provides the daily Iceberg Limit to 60°N as a graphical chart, a text bulletin, a KML or a shape file. The graphical chart also contains iceberg distribution estimates. The Iceberg Limit is established by the Canadian Ice Service (CIS) from September through January and by IIP from February through August. A weekly iceberg outlook for the Grand Banks of Newfoundland along with background information describing the IIP’s mission and history are also available on this site. Together with the CIS and the US National Ice Center (USNIC), IIP is a member of the North American Ice Service. The IIP site contains links to CIS and the USNIC.

International Ice Patrol

Hyperlink 1: The Polar Code by Lloyds
Lloyd's provides information and assistance for users to comply with the Polar Code. Lloyd's interactive toolkit allows users to work through the Code on their own terms and download Lloyd's register free guidance, templates and examples to help understand and meet compliance needs.

Hyperlink 2: Lloyd's Polar Code Resources
Lloyd's also provides guidance documents on; the Operational Assessment, setting operational limitations (limitation wording), determining the Operating Envelope and LR’s How to use POLARIS.

Hyperlink 3: The Polar Code: A Regulatory Interpretation Guide
This document provides Lloyd's Register guidance on all aspects of the Polar Code (chapter by chapter). For Chapter 9, see the LR Regulatory Guide pages 53 to 56.

Lloyd's Register website.

Hyperlink:https://www.pmel.noaa.gov/arctic-zone/data.html

• Realtime Data and Climate Indices
  • Data and Analyses
  • Indices
  • Weather
• Retrospective or Historical Data, Analyses and Indices
  • Data and Analyses
• • Indices

NOAA website

Hyperlink: BarentsPortal
Chapter 11 of the Polar Code calls for mariners to take into account marine mammals when planning voyages, and to avoid harm as much as possible when transiting in polar environments. The Norwegian Polar Institute's Barents Portal provides mariner's with environmental information to ensure as little impact to the marine environment as possible.

Norwegian Polar Institute

Hyperlink: http://www.polarview.aq/
The Polar View data page is operated by the British Antarctic Survey with European Space Agency support. This site provides freely available satellite data and automated ice information products for both polar regions. It is highly utilized by mariners in the Southern Ocean, in particular, where there is a current lack of regular ice information from national services.

Hyperlink: http://eng.navigation.gl/
Navigation.gl is a portal for use by mariners who are not familiar with navigation in arctic waters, especially the waters surrounding Greenland. Mariners intending to navigate in the waters surrounding Greenland can use the portal to obtain an overview of the websites of relevant authorities and institutions that provide information about safe navigation in these waters. The navigation.gl portal is developed in collaboration between Danish and Greenland authorities. The portal primarily features links to the websites of the Danish Maritime Authority, The Danish Geodata Agency and the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI).

Danish Geodata Agency website

Hyperlink 1: Northern Sea Route – Best practices and Challenges (2017)
For Chapter 9, see pages 1-2, 4-12, and 15-18.

Hyperlink 2: Offshore Vessel Operations In Ice and or Severe Sub Zero Temperatures in Artic and Sub Artic regions (2014).
The purpose of this paper is to provide guidance to operators and charterers of offshore support vessels employed for use in areas impacted by ice or severe sub-zero temperatures with the aim of encouraging high standards of safety and environmental protection for those operating in Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions.

Hyperlink: http://arcg.is/1SOnqb
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s Arctic Support Web map provides public access to nautical information products relevant for the Polar Code including Arctic charts and sailing directions. These standard nautical products address sections 9.2.1 of Chapter 9: Safety of Navigation and 11.3 of Chapter 11: Voyage Planning. The Web map also provides relevant Arctic spatial data for download such as elevation, sea ice extents, airfields, and search and rescue zones. Many other hydrographic and broader maritime domain data sets and resources are provided as Web services.

NGA website

Hyperlink 1: https://wwmiws.wmo.int/

The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) website displays the marine forecast and warning products that are provided to mariners via SafetyNet, SafetyCast, and NAVTEX, as part of the Worldwide Met-Ocean Information and Warning Service (WWMIWS), within the framework of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS). The worlds' oceans have been divided into 21 areas, called METAREA's, for the provision of marine products to shipping. The products displayed are issued by the National Meteorological Services (NMS) appointed as WWMIWS Issuing Services. METAREA Coordinators are assigned to coordinate provision of the marine services for each area. Canada, Norway, Russian Federation have responsibilities in the respective METAREAs in the Arctic polar waters.

WMO website